Chap. 6

Double-Sided

He is sorry…. The thought crossed Zuko's mind for almost the hundredth time as he looked out onto the horizon. Since Fuego had gone below deck, Zuko had spent almost the whole time thinking about the words both he and the Water-Tribe girl had said. Part of him was overjoyed that his father truly did love him, that he knew he had erred by banishing his son. But another part, a greater one, was wondering if that love was enough. The girl was right, Zuko had seen much destruction in his travels. But it had horrified him. Back home, he had only heard stories of the Fire Nation's great victories against the enemy nations. But to see the broken skulls on the field of the Earth Kingdom and the drowned bodies of the Water-Tribes…..

And worse still to see the bones of the Air Nomads. For Zuko had, early in his travels journeyed to the Air Temples and seen the destruction there. He had always been told that the Airbenders had been a necessary loss, to keep the Fire Nation safe. But what safety could be gained by killing a nation of monks? And Father has supported it all. Zuko thought. How? Doesn't he realize that no victory is worth a hundred years of death and destruction? For a second, Zuko remembered similar words that had forced him to leave his home. But Zuko's sense of honor rose to meet it. You are right Zuko. It said to him. But perhaps you can be the one to make your father see…..

But Zuko did not get to finish that thought, for suddenly his uncle's voice rang in his ears. "I am sorry to be late Prince." The old general said as he walked up the gangplank. "But the merchants here carry so many different samples of tea."

"It's all right Uncle." Zuko said, absentmindedly. At that, Iroh's eyebrows shot up; he'd been expecting his nephew to fly into a rage. "Zuko has something happened?" he asked.

"We have the Avatar." Zuko replied.

Iroh gasped in shock, then his face changed into a huge grin. "Zuko, congratulations! I always had faith that you could do this!"

"Thank you Uncle." Zuko replied. "The boy is being held in the cell I designed, being tested by Father's tracker, Fuego."

"A tracker?" Iroh asked, his face growing confused.

"Yes Uncle. He said that Father has felt regret over my banishment, and sent this man to make sure we brought the true Avatar back to the Fire Nation." Zuko explained. But Iroh only shook his head.

"Prince Zuko, I am sorry, but I think you have been deceived. If your father had done this, which I doubt he would, I would have been given information about it."

"Perhaps the message didn't reach you." Zuko said, trying to cling to the hope that Fuego's words held.

"Zuko, your father keeps no servant I know of named Fuego."

Upon those words, Zuko's mouth sparked as he gritted his teeth. "He will pay for his deception!" Zuko cried, as he whirled around to enter the hold. But then he felt his uncle's hand on his shoulder.

"Zuko wait. Things may have changed; we have been gone from home a long time. Let us see what this man will do first. He may be telling the truth, but we need to make sure. When the Avatar is involved, we cannot let things enter into chaos."

But Iroh's words were too little, too late. Within seconds the prison room below reached chaos. The air in the cell moved with the fury of a full-fledged hurricane, as Aang fully entered the Avatar State, his eyes and tattoos glowing brightly. The air swirled around him as his enhanced abilities directed it into the inner workings of his manacles. Suddenly, the air inside the locks pushed out, forcing the chains apart. Aang began to hover forward then, his face contorted in rage as he came closer to Fuego, who quickly released Katara's arm. But strangely, the man in red didn't move. He simply stood his ground as Aang came closer.

"I suppose that answers that question." Fuego yelled over the winds, as he looked down at Katara, his voice echoing no concern. "I don't suppose you could tell him to stop?" he asked the young Waterbender, who was still gritting her teeth against the pain of her burn. "No, I suppose you wouldn't right now anyway." Fuego said, as he began to back away from the advancing form of Aang. "Thankfully, I can."

With that, Fuego suddenly began to speak in a strange, harsh-sounding language; "Alki ninya, myau ei Juea de Darya. Yoluki mu, Avatar. Yoluki mu, Roku." Whatever he said was gibberish to Katara and Sokka, but it had a profound affect on Aang. The young Avatar halted in midair, his face becoming neutral as he stared at Fuego. The man in red returned the stare, as he continued to speak. "Darya y Arcicta hise Jueas yu opet de Avatar. Ese nu opet te newe. Tue hute ey poyo il speste re mi spetelle?"

Slowly, Aang's head nodded down in response to Fuego's question. "Gradi." Fuego said, accompanied by a sigh of relief. With that, Aang's eyes suddenly eased their way closed, as he left the Avatar State and fell to the ground unconscious. Or would have fallen to the ground, if Fuego had not moved forward to catch him. As the red man gently lay Aang down, he heard Sokka yell out, "What did you do to him?"

"If you've hurt him…" Katara hissed through her pain.

"Not now." Fuego whispered back, as he turned to the door.

"Guards! In here now!" Fuego yelled, as he suddenly gripped Aang's body tightly, making it look as though he was restraining the boy. Almost instantly the door swung open, as the Fire Nation guards Zuko had posted ran in. "What happened? We heard some screaming, and then…" one guard began, but then stopped when he saw Fuego clutching Aang's body.

"It's all right. The test is finished." The red man explained. "This boy is indeed the Avatar."

"What happened in here?" the guard asked.

"I used my knowledge to place him in the Avatar State, a defense mechanism that only the true Avatar has access to. Thankfully, I also knew how to stop him once it happened. Now, help me get him back in his chains."

The guards nodded, and taking Aang from Fuego, they returned him to the manacles on the wall. As they locked them in place once again, Fuego got to his feet and said,

"He'll be unconscious for at least a few more minutes. But it would be disastrous if he becomes a problem at sea. And his friends could give him a solution or the motivation to get out if they are kept together."

"Should we place them in separate cells then?" asked one of the guards. But Fuego shook his head.

"I have a better idea. Go tell the Prince that there will be an execution before we leave today. It'll eliminate our problem and kill the Avatar's drive both at the same time. And take the others with you, so they can set up the chain locks on the deck."

"Of course." The guard replied, as he moved to relay the message. "Are you sure…"

"Don't worry. I'll bring them up, and the Avatar will awaken just in time to see his friends burned alive."

Satisfied, the guards nodded and left the room. Fuego followed them tot eh doorway, and watched as they traveled up the hallway. Once they were out of his sight, the man swung the door shut and turned back to the group. "Works every time. These guys love to see a barbecue." He said, as he moved over to Aang. Looking up at the unconscious Avatar, he spoke in the strange language again; "Roku, elende spetre."

With that, Aang suddenly let out a moan, as his eyelids opened. "Glad to see you awake Avatar." Fuego said.

"Oh right, you want him to see us get fried!" Sokka yelled at the red man. That woke Aang right up.

"What is he talking about! What did you do to me!" Before he could continue, Fuego clapped a hand over his mouth.

"What I do and what I say are two different things Avatar." The red man said. "I told them that to get them out of the room. But I don't have any intention of letting it happen. What I do intend, is to get all three of you out of this place and to somewhere you'll be safe."

"Are you insane?" Sokka yelled, as Aang's face simply grew puzzled. "After what you've done to us? Why the hell should we trust you?"

"Because you don't have many options right now." Fuego replied. "And because I can get you out Avatar, if you listen."

"Don't listen, he's lying." Katara said, as she rose to her feet clutching her wounded arm. "He's just saying that so he can confuse you." Fuego's only response was to shake his head.

"I suppose I shouldn't be surprised. But if you give me a minute, I can give even you a reason to trust me."

Fuego moved away from Aang then, and began to walk towards Katara.

"Get away from me!" Katara yelled, as the red man came closer.

"If you touch her…." Sokka warned.

"Calm down." Fuego replied, as he snaked his hand out and grabbed Katara's burnt arm. Gently but firmly, he pulled it towards him, getting a full view of the burnt, cracked, and blistered skin. "Man, I really don't know my own strength." Fuego said sadly. With that, he took his free hand and held it over the burnt area. Katara frantically tried to pull away, expecting him to finish the job. And though a second later, flame did burst down from Fuego's hand, what happened was something that none of the group expected. The flame the appeared was bright yellow, almost gold in complexion. As it ran over the burn, Katara realized that she felt no pain from it. But what was more amazing was that as she watched, the skin under the flame began to change and revert back to normal. The blisters healed, the cracks vanished, and the pain dissipated as the yellow flame did its work. Within seconds, the burn was completely gone and Fuego moved away to show his handiwork.

"Can I be trusted a little now?" he asked, as Katara looked at her arm in amazement.

"How did you…" she began to ask, but Fuego simply said, "There is more to firebending then you think." Katara looked at her arm a moment longer, then said, "All right, I'm listening."

"What!" Sokka yelled out. But once again, Fuego ignored him.

"I apologize for the wound, but I needed to make sure your friend was the Avatar, and the Avatar State is the only way to know for sure. Besides, I would never have done it if I couldn't take it away."

"But what did you do to me?" Aang asked.

"While you're in that State, you are connected to the Spirit World. I took the chance to speak to Avatar Roku."

"You can do that?" Aang sputtered in amazement.

"Yes. And to make sure the guards wouldn't overhear, I spoke in the ancient tongue of the Fire-Nation, which hasn't been spoken in one hundred years. I basically told him who I was, and that I needed him to put you to sleep until I said otherwise."

"And who are you?" Sokka asked.

"I am a part of a very important Knighthood." Fuego replied. "We have many goals, and one of them is to make sure that the Avatar does not fall into the hands of the Fire-Nation. I was sent to test your friend because my fire abilities let me blend in. Plus, I am quite an effective actor."

"So we've seen." Katara said.

"Indeed. Now then, I know how to get you off this ship, but you're going to have to trust me." Aang, Sokka, and Katara looked at each other for a moment, then Aang said, "Well, it isn't like we have much choice. What's your plan?"

"First, we need to get you three out of those chains.' Fuego said. Moving over to where Sokka and Katara were kept, Fuego grabbed their chains and melted through them. As the siblings relished in their freedom, Fuego quickly freed Aang. "Now, there is still one more thing to do." Fuego said, as the three of them gathered around him. "One of the Knights I work with is quite skilled in metalworking. He constructed these for our escape." With a flourish, Fuego drew out two sets of chains, and two sets of manacles from his cape.

"So, we're going to escape by being chained?" Sokka asked.

"Not exactly. The chains are designed to break apart with a little bit of strength. You should be able to get easily. Now then, here's what we're going to do……"